McALLEN, Texas — Trancasa USA, Inc., a trucking and logistics company located in Pharr, Texas with locations in south and west Texas, violated federal law when it refused to hire a class of older applicants for driver positions because of their ages, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit announced today.

According to the lawsuit, since at least June 2023, Trancasa has refused to hire a class of older applicants for driver positions because the company’s liability insurance policy did not cover drivers over age 65. The suit also states that under its insurance policy, Trancasa agreed to impose more demanding driving record standards for applicants over age 60.

“Employers cannot discriminate against workers by claiming that the discrimination is required or authorized by a contract with another party, such as a customer or insurance provider,” said acting EEOC Dallas Regional Attorney Ronald L. Phillips. “Such agreements and their implementation are illegal, and both parties to the contract place themselves at considerable risk of potential litigation and liability.”

The conduct alleged in the EEOC’s complaint violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), which prohibits discrimination against individuals 40 or older because of age, including failure to hire and imposing different terms and conditions of employment. The EEOC filed suit (U.S. EEOC v. Trancasa USA, Inc., Case No. 7:26-cv-00457) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, McAllen Division after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process.

EEOC San Antonio Field Office Director Norma Guzman said, “Federal law prohibits employers from refusing to hire workers who are age 40 or older because of their ages. This prohibition applies regardless of whether the employer makes those hiring decisions based on its own views or the views, preferences or demands of a third party such as an insurance company.”

For more information on age discrimination, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/age-discrimination.

The lawsuit was initiated by the EEOC’s Dallas District Office, which has jurisdiction over a substantial part of Texas and parts of southern New Mexico.

The EEOC is the sole federal agency authorized to investigate and litigate against businesses and other private sector employers for violations of federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. For public sector employers, the EEOC shares jurisdiction with the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. The EEOC also is responsible for coordinating the federal government’s employment antidiscrimination effort. More information about the EEOC is available at www.eeoc.gov.